THE BULLETIN

14th October 2018

Number 11

Midweek Action

County cup competitions took centre stage during midweek, with a number of Western League sides in action across the South West. During the first round of the Somerset Premier Cup, league form mattered for very little at the Lew Hill Memorial Ground, where First Division strugglers Portishead Town struck twice in either half to defeat Odd Down 4-1. Goals from Ollie Hucker and Adam Wright helped Cheddar to a 2-0 win at home to Brislington, while Bishop Sutton fell to a 4-0 defeat at the hands of Yeovil Town. Penalties were required to decide the all-First Division clash in Ashton & Backwell, with the visitors from Wincanton prevailing on spot kicks thanks to a starring performance from keeper Liam Norris. At Twerton Park, Bishops Lydeard fell to a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Bath City, despite going ahead midway through the first-half following Mark Clunie’s successful penalty. 24 hours later, goals from Max Westlake and Steve Friend secured Chard’s passage through to the next round thanks to a 2-0 win at home to Keynsham Town. Clevedon were also winners on their own patch with second half goals from Syd Camper and Jack Sell helping them to defeat Wellington 2-1, while Jack Taylor struck the winner seven minutes from time for Bridgwater in their 2-1 victory over Wells City. Welton keeper Tom Drewitt provided the star performance of the night, with the shot-stopper playing a vital role in their spot kick victory away at Larkhall Athletic.

Cribbs maintained theirimpressive form in knockout competitions this season, with goals from Ben Dowdell and Tom Collett firing them to a 2-0 win away at Chipping Sodbury in the Gloucestershire FA Challenge Trophy. In the same competition on Wednesday evening, Roman GlassSt George progressed through to the next round, with goals from Nathan Legge and Lewis Wentland firing them to a 2-0 win over Ruardean Hill.

Premier Division

Bridgwater Town’s superior goal difference, which has helped them move top of the table, was helped no end by their 5-1 win away at Shepton Mallet. Ian Bellinger’s eighth minute volley gave the visitors a dream start, which was doubled less than five minutes later by top scorer Jack Taylor. Shepton threatened a fightback when they cut the deficit midway through the second half, but after Taylor tucked home his second, two late goals from Harry Horton confirmed the big win for Bridgy. Clevedon Town are enjoying a strong start to their season, with their 2-0 win away at Hengrove making it seven wins from nine in the league. After going ahead in the 20th minute through Jack Sell, Clevedon had to wait until stoppage time to confirm the victory, with Syd Camper burying a long range free-kick. Wayne Thorne’s first game in charge of Bradford Town ended in victory, with second half goals from Dan Price and substitute Jason Henley helping them come from behind to beat the ten men of Wellington. Hallen were victors by one goal to nil against Chipping Sodbury Town, with Daryl Charman’s third minute strike the only difference between the sides. At Homers Heath, Buckland Athletic overturned an early two-goal deficit to defeat Shortwood United 4-2. Goals from Ryan Antell and Andreas Ali sent the visitors into a shock 2-0 lead after just 18 minutes, before Buckland shot into life, scoring twice in quick succession through Lloyd Gardner and Charlie Johansen to level things up. A goal just before the interval from Richard Groves handed the Bucks their first lead of the afternoon, which was extended in the second half thanks to another Groves effort.

First Division

Welton Rovers came from behind once again to extend their winning streak in the league to seven matches, recovering from a poor start to defeat Sherborne Town 2-1 at West Clewes. All three goals came before the break, with Nick Jacobs firing Sherborne into a sixth minute lead, before the Lewis’s Coleman and Hunt each got on the scoresheet to secure the win for Welton. Second-place Chard Town came out on the right side of an eight-goal thriller, beating Warminster 5-3 at Weymouth Street. Goals from Kieran Bailey and Tom Salter saw Chard level at the break, cancelling out Nick Taylor’s brace for the home side. Ben Haines then gave the visitors their first lead of the afternoon just after the hour mark, with Bailey and substitute Jacob Manley adding to their advantage before Jake Wright scored a late consolation for the gallant Warminster. Calne Town’s Stuart Windsor continued his stellar season in front of goal, scoring four for the Lilywhites during their 5-0 triumph at home to bottom side Portishead.

The fixture between Corsham and Radstock ended goalless in goalless, while efforts from Ryan Stiles and Liam Davies handed Wells City a 2-1 victory at home to Devizes Town. After a tough start to their season, Keynsham Town are now up to sixth spot after coming from two goals down to beat Bishops Lydeard 3-2 at the Crown Fields. Following an hour without incident, the away side capitalised on a poor defensive showing from their opponents to open up a two-goal lead through Harry Millar and Ryan Brereton. The substitutes bench was then emptied by Keynsham and it made instant impact with two pairs of fresh legs in Daniel Spill and Matt Long each scoring to draw the sides level late on in the contest. The home side pushed for victory, and with five minutes left on the clock, Michael Grist was the goalscoring hero to complete the impressive turnaround. An entertaining contest in Somerset saw Wincanton share six goals with Ashton & Backwell United as they battled to a 3-3 draw. Declan Cornish and Dan Wise each put Wincanton ahead on different occasions, but Ashton fought back, twice through Saul Jarrett and then also through Joe Bishop, with Wise’s second successful penalty in the final few minutes securing a point for the home side. Goals either side of the break from Jamie Symonds and Liam Villis led Oldland to a 2-0 win at home to Chippenham Park, while at Lakeview, Bishop Sutton held off a late fightback to eventually defeat BristolTelephones 3-2.

FA Vase

Cribbs are one of just four Western League sides who remain in the FA Vase following their terrific 3-2 win away at Brimscombe & Thrupp. The visitors had to stave off a number of fightbacks from their hosts but eventually ran out winners thanks to Ben Dowdell’s double after Sol Wanjau-Smith had handed them the early lead. Cadbury Heath will join Cribbs in the draw for the second round, after Matt Huxley struck a hat-trick on his return to the side during their 5-0 win at home to Sidmouth Town. 120 minutes were required for Cheddar to book their passage through, with Adam Jones scoring in the second half of extra-time to secure a nail-biting 1-0 win at home to Totton & Eling. The fourth side through are Willand Rovers, with Angus Wilson’s double, plus goals from Luke Mortimore and Brad Ausden leading them to a 4-1 win away at Odd Down. Callum Demkiv’s second half effort wasn’t enough for Westbury who fell to a 2-1 defeat at Saltash, while Roman Glass suffered a 2-0 defeat at home to Malmesbury Victoria. Bridport and Plymouth Parkway each conceded six during heavy defeats, with Bitton and Longwell Green Sports also seeing their cup run’s come to a premature end.